Retro Snap: Let’s Discuss This Young Stud

It’s Gore Vidal. Vidal died last night at the age of 86, at his home in Los Angeles. The author of Myra Breckinridge, Julian and Washington D.C. will, in addition to his literary output, be remembered for some of his famous feuds – like this one with Norman Mailer:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8m9vDRe8fw?version=3]

While he was known to be acerbic, Vidal reserved some of his harshest (and cleverest) criticism for himself, claiming “I’m exactly as I appear. There is no warm, lovable person inside. Beneath my cold exterior, once you break the ice, you find cold water.”

However, it’s also worth noting that, when Vidal’s long-term companion, Mr. Austen, died, his last words were “didn’t it go by awfully fast?”

“Of course it had,” Mr. Vidal wrote. “We had been too happy and the gods cannot bear the happiness of mortals.”

I think if authors aren’t going to be feuding in heaven, then it would hardly be worth going there at all. Godspeed, Gore Vidal, you cold glass of water, you.